Adieu lovely Larissa

Larissa in Karlsruhe

                                                      Larissa

Larissa would have been 36 years old this December, most likely the oldest polar bear on the planet. The longtime companion of Vitus suffered from the plagues of old age, and died on July 10 in Neumünster Zoo in Germany. Larissa and Vitus lived together in Karlsruhe for 14 years before they moved together to Neumünster in 2017, where they enjoyed each others' company for nine more years.

                                     

                                       Vitus, Larissa and Nika in Karlsruhe

Larissa was born to Mien and Theo in Rotterdam Zoo on December 5, 1990. She moved to Paris when she was almost two years old, and then after about a year to der Wilhelma in  Stuttgart where she lived for ten years. She came to Karlsruhe in 2003 where three year old Vitus was already living. Rounding out the longtime trio was Nika, same age as Vitus. It was expected that this trio would restart the polar bear breeding reputation of Zoo Karlsruhe, but these three beautiful bears never did produce any cubs, and later it was found that Vitus could not father cubs. 

                                   Larissa on the left, Nika on the right

Larissa's mother Mien later gave birth in Rotterdam to a son named Taco, half brother of Larissa. Taco later became well known for his poor living conditions in Chile, which is not a suitable place for a polar bear. He passed away in Santiago at the age of 19. Larissa had no other relatives.  

 

Larissa on the left, Nika on the right, were close buddies.

Larissa and Nika had quite a strong bond of friendship, and sought to be near one another. When Larissa and Vitus retired to Neumünster in 2017, leaving Nika behind, it was probably hard on all three.

Vitus and his girls, Larissa and Nika

Nika, still in Karlsruhe, died in 2019 of a wound on her leg, a wound that would not heal. 

                      Nika on the left, while Larissa lounges on the right

Sometimes the three of them would chase each other around, play and pretend to fight.  

Now with Nika gone in 2019 and Larissa last week, it is just Vitus left of this happy trio. He is still in Neumünster, but all alone there, most likely swimming his laps as he loves to do. He will be 26 this winter.

Larissa as I last saw her in Neumünster, she was separated behind a barrier that day. 

              Nika top, and Larissa, hiding her nose in her cute paws.

    My friend Pim told me how to tell them apart, that Larissa looked older, was more round and fluffy than Nika, and had darker fur. 

                               The round fluffy lady Larissa 

A sad farewell to a sweet lady bear. The oldest polar bear in the world. 

Lloyd leaves us

 

Lloyd, king of Bremerhaven

Lloyd, father of six cubs, passed away May 1 from liver disease. He was 26 years old.

Lloyd had very long legs, just like his half brother Felix.
So he stood very tall.

 Lloyd was born November 26, 2000 in Schönbrunn Zoo in Vienna to Olinka and Eric. His twin sister Nika died in 2019 in Karlsruhe.

Lloyd's sister twin Nika in Karlsruhe. Lloyd later lived in Karlsruhe.

Lloyd was related to many bears in Europe, and also in Japan and in the US. His American cousins are descendants of Olaf and Olga, and include Berlin, Anoki, Lee, Haley NC Anana and Kulu.

Lloyd's mother Olinka, with her last set of twins,
 Todz and Sizzel, in Rotterdam.

His mother Olinka was the daughter of American born Omaha, son of Olaf and Olga in the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha.

His father Eric was son of Aika of Tierpark Berlin. Eric's brother Bjorn-Heinrich was father of Paula and Yuki in Japan. 

Olinka and Eric were parents of many others bears, Lara, twins Arktos and Nanuq, Vicks, and twins Todz and Sizzel. With a mother bear named Olga, Eric was also the father of Felix, who went on to father the famous Flocke, as well as Gregor and Aleut, and Charlotte. 

Lloyd overlooking the North Sea
in Bremerhaven am Meer in Germany.

Lloyd was born in Vienna, and moved to Bremerhaven in 2002, where he lived for most of his life with Valeska and fathered four girls. Valeska is one of the "V" cubs of Churchill and Vienna. 

Lloyd in Bremerhaven

Lloyd moved to Karlsruhe in 2022, where he lived for a short time with his niece Charlotte. In 2023 he moved to Budapest, and then in 2024 to Sosto, where he fathered twin boys Jorek and Ootek with Simona's daughter Sneschana. 

Lloyd's cubs Jorek and Ootek in Sosto Zoo (not my photo)

Lloyd's daughter Lale is now in Emmen in the Netherlands.

Lale and mother Valeska in 2014 in Bremerhaven.

Lili is in Rostock Germany. 

Lili and mother Valeska in Bremerhaven in 2016.

Anna and Elsa, named for the ice princess sisters in "Frozen," are in  Zoo Brno in the Czech Republic. I have not visited them. 

Although they were born several years apart,
 for a time sisters Lale and Lili lived together
 in the zoo in Emmen in the Netherlands.

When Lloyd lived in Bremerhaven, he had a vast terrain in this tiny zoo on the North Sea. He could look out the windows at the wild sea beyond. 

A window on the North Sea, watching the ships come and go.

When Valeska had cubs to take care of, the zoo would keep Lloyd behind the scenes all day, and only let him out in the late afternoon, after mother and children were put away for the day.

Lloyd inspecting his domain in Bremerhaven.

At 26, he was the oldest male bear in Europe, but it is still too young to lose such a magnificent polar bear as was Lloyd.  

Lloyd was curious and bright. 

Peeking out

Lloyd with his scepter.

Mother Olinka at rest now

                                                        Olinka and one of her cubs 

Olinka was a patient mother, and that quality served her well in raising eight cubs. 

Sizzel and Todz, with mother Olinka

At age 28, which is fairly senior age for a lady polar bear, she was diagnosed with an advanced liver tumor, and possibly kidney involvement, while under anesthetic on Tuesday, February 9, and in light of how unwell she had been lately, it was decided to not wake her.

She had lived at Diergaarde Blijdorp in Rotterdam since 2010, where she lived with Eric, father of all her cubs, until his death in 2015. 

Lunchtime in Rotterdam

Olinka was born November 21, 1992 in Cologne, Germany, the daughter of Olga and an American born male named Omaha.

I remember the first polar bears I ever saw, when I used to take my kids to the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha Nebraska, many times in 1980-83. At that time, Olaf and Olga had had a cub, named Omaha, born just after my son was born. Omaha grew up and was sent off to Europe. That cub was Olinka's father. Olinka was the only cub he fathered.

Young Olinka and her mother Olga moved to Vienna, where they met Eric. He would father two cubs with Olga, and eight with Olinka.

 There in Vienna, Olinka gave birth to twins Lloyd and Nika in 2000. In 2001, Olinka's mother Olga gave birth to Felix and Nord, so to make room in Vienna, in early 2002, Nika moved to Karlsruhe, and Olinka and young Lloyd moved to Bremerhaven, where Lloyd still lives.

Then back to Vienna, where Lara was born in 2004. Both Olinka and young Lara moved to Gelsenkirchen in 2005,  where they stayed for a year. Then back to Vienna again, leaving Lara in Gelsenkirchen.  Twins Arktos and Nanuq were born in 2007 in Vienna. Then in 2010 Olinka made her final move to Rotterdam, where she gave birth to Vicks at the end of the year. In 2014, Olinka had twins Sizzel and Todz. Shortly afterwards, Eric passed away.

Seven of her eight cubs are alive and well, and have produced eight grandchildren for Olinka.

Lloyd lives in Bremerhaven, and is the father of Lale, Lili, Anna and Elsa. Nika passed away last year in Karlsruhe. Lara still lives in Gelsenkirchen and is the mother of daughter Nanook. Arktos lives in Highlands Wildlife Park and is the father of Wee Hamish. Nanuq lives in Nuremberg. Vicks lives in Mulhouse France and is the father of daughter Nanuq and a brand new cub. Sizzel lives in Rostock, and Todz lives in LeVigen France.

Russian male Wolodja has lived in Rotterdam for the past few years, and now is the only polar bear there. 

Olinka keeping an eye on Todz and Sizzel

Twins Todz and Sizzel, with mom Olinka

Olinka and daughter Sizzel

Olinka and cub

Olinka was a patient mother, here with Sizzel and Todz

It's sad to think that Olinka is gone. She was a loving, attentive mother, happy to play with her cubs, and very affectionate. A beautiful lady. She leaves a lasting legacy in her children and grandchildren.

 There are only a few polar bears of the Olaf and Olga line left in the U.S., in spite of their having seven children. I am happy to know so many of their bloodline lives on in Olinka's cubs all over Europe.

Olinka has now strolled into history. Rest in Peace, sweet lady.

The beloved polar bears we lost in 2019

Fanny (Bam Bam)

We said goodbye to some very special bears this past year. Each one is unique, and a great loss.

Nord - age 17

Nord and his twin brother Felix were b0rn November 24, 2001 in Vienna, to Olga and Eric.

Nord died early in the year,  on January 8, 2019 in Tallinn, Estonia. He had been treated for over a year for a behavioral problem that led to an ulcer on his foot, and his condition had deteriorated. 

Nord and Felix's father was Eric, and their mother was Olga, mother of Olinka. For a period of a couple of months, back in 2001-02, there were four cubs in Schoenbrunn Zoo in Vienna, newborn cubs Nord and Felix, and one year old twins Nika and Lloyd, all with the same father, and the mothers were mother and daughter.

Nord lived in Novosibirsk Russia for five years, then Moscow. He came to Tallinn in 2009

Nord was the father of Nora born in 2013, now in Vienna and a new mother.

Nord's son Aron was born in 2016 and the cub is still in Tallinn with his mother Frida. 

Nord's favorite drink was kefir, a yogurt drink. 

His twin brother Felix, father of Flocke, Milak, Gregor and Aleut and Charlotte, now lives in Leeuwarden, the Netherlands.

Bam Bam (Fanny) - age 31

Fanny with my mother, at the Omaha Zoo

The last of the six Olaf and Olga offspring from the zoo in Omaha, Bam Bam died  on February 20.

Bam Bam and her twin sister Patches were born November 29, 1987. For 20 years, Patches and Bam Bam happily lived together in the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, where they were born. They were separated in 2007, when Patches was moved to a much poorer enclosure in Erie Pa, for breeding purposes. Patches may have become pregnant, but no cubs ever survived. In 2013 Patches was moved to a much better environment, a new enclosure in the North Carolina Zoo, where she seemed to thrive, but died a year after moving in. That was five years ago.

Bam Bam, given that nickname because she liked to bang on the door to alert her keepers, was moved, not far from where she was born, to the Kansas City Zoo in the spring of 2018. At the time, the Henry Doorly Zoo was completely redesigning Bear Canyon, and all the residents had to move elsewhere. Bam Bam said goodbye to the only home she had ever known and moved in with her great niece Berlin, who was about the same age as Bam Bam. Berlin is the granddaughter of Bam Bam's brother Shep. The Kansas City Zoo enclosure is huge and grassy and a lovely environment for polar bears.

Bam Bam enjoyed her fine new home, and got along well with Berlin, but died at the age of 31 after developing liver cancer.

Bam Bam enjoying her favorite treat 

Bam Bam really loved her celery. Her keepers would throw a variety of fruits and vegetables into the pool, and she would always go for the celery first. She loved peanut butter too. 

She was very interactive with her fans, and would swim back and forth in front of the glass so she could study them.

Olaf and Olga were the first polar bears I ever saw. I was happy to bring my mother to meet Bam Bam, one of their cubs. Bam Bam was very gracious to my mom, and paid her a great deal of attention.



Nuuk-Nordman - age 25

Nuuk - also called Nordman

Nuuk - Nordman died in March at Skandanavisk Dyrepark in Kolind Denmark at the age of 25 years. 

He and his twin sister Ilka were born on December 2, 1993 in  Kolmarden Zoo in Sweden. He was given the name Nordman. 

While in Sweden, he met a young wildborn bear named Huggies, and he fathered a cub with her in 2001. Huggies and the cub Freedom moved to the Netherlands shortly thereafter. Ilka and Nordman stayed in Kolmarden until January of 2006 when they moved to the newly opened Skandanavisk Dyrepark. The zoo in Kolmarden had decided to not keep polar bears anymore, and there was a brand new zoo waiting for them. In Denmark, he was renamed Nuuk. At the same time, a 4 year old cub bear named Nanok also moved to the new Skandanavisk Dyrepark, which had room for many bears. Nuuk and Nanok became inseparable, except during breeding season when Nanok spent all his time with Nuuk's sister Ilka, which produced some cubs. 

Nuuk and Nanok

Skandanavisk Dyrepark with room to roam

Nuuk and Ilka's mother CW was twin sister to Elvis, father of the famous Tips and Taps hybrid bears in Osnabruck. Elvis and CW were born in Memphis Tennessee. Nuuk and Ilka's grandfather Bruno (in Memphis) was also the grandfather of Cincinnati's Anana, and twins Kiska and Kolluk of Albuquerque.

Nuuk and Ilka's father Imarac was half brother to Churchill, Kara, Lisa, and Mirsha, so they were first cousins of Boris of Point Defiance Zoo in Tacoma, Knut's father Lars, and many other polar bears of Europe.

Nuuk and Ilka were also younger siblings of the late Manasse of Finland, and the late Yukihime, and Baffin of Japan

Nuuk leaves a legacy of descendants. He fathered one cub, Freedom, with Huggies. Like her mother, Freedom is a prolific mother. She has recently given birth to another set of twins in Ouwehands, the Netherlands. She is also the mother of new father Sprinter, twins Taiko and Sesi of France, and twins Sura of Ouwehands and Akiak of Rostock. 

Nuuk passed away peacefully in his sleep. I am sure his good friend Nanok misses him greatly.


Bora - almost 33 years old

Born in Vienna, Bora spent ten years in Dvůr Králové Zoo in the Czech Republic, but most of her life in Prague.  She had one cub, Berta, who still lives in Prague with her mate Tom.


Nika - age 19

Nika

Nika died on her 19th birthday in Zoo Karlsruhe in Germany, gone much too soon, much too young. 

She and her twin brother Lloyd were born November 26, 2000, in Vienna to Olinka and Eric. 

Nika came to Karlsruhe in early 2002 when she was little more than a year of age. Both Nika and Lloyd left Vienna shortly after Olinka's mother Olga gave birth to another set of twins, Nord and Felix, in the same zoo with same father, Eric. 

While Lloyd went to the new Zoo Am Meer in Bremerhaven, Nika came to the brand new polar bear habitat in Zoo Karlsruhe, along with two young males, one year old Vitus from Rostock and one year old Kap from Moscow. A year later, ten year old Larissa came from nearby Stuttgart.

Kap left for Neumünster several years later, but the other three stayed in Karlsruhe, and Nika grew up with Vitus. The  three bears got along well, wrestling, chasing each other, and playing games in the large habitat.

Nika, Vitus and Larissa having fun

 Nika and Larissa were very close, and often took naps near each other.

Nika and a sleeping Larissa

There were hopes every year that Nika would have cubs, but it never happened, and several years ago, tests showed that Vitus was sterile. So Vitus and Larissa moved to Neumünster, and Kap came back to Karlsruhe in the spring of 2017.

Again, there were hopes that Nika would produced cubs, this time with Kap, but along they got along well, it just didn't happen, and now she is gone, all too soon.

Nika had been troubled for several years by ulcers on her back leg. She kept worrying at it, chewing on it. The vets tried everything, even put some blue substance on it to keep her from chewing. Her condition deteriorated suddenly, and the decision was made to prevent further suffering.

As an offspring of Olinka, Nika was related to some American bears. She was the great granddaughter of Olaf and Olga of the Omaha Zoo, as Olinka's father was the late Omaha, one of the six offspring of Olaf and Olga, brother to Bam Bam, who also died this year. 

Blizzard - age 5

A five year old bear named Blizzard died while being examined at the Journey to Churchill at Assiniboine Park Zoo in Canada. He had come to the zoo with his twin sister Star as a year old orphaned cub, having been picked up by a helicopter. He had recently been unwell, not eating, and had been put under anesthesia to assess his condition, and was given antibiotics. He was doing well, then his condition worsened again, and he was again put under anesthesia, but did not come out of it. There may have been some heart abnormalities.

There are nine other young rescued polar bears at Assiniboine Park Zoo.



Lutyik - almost age 19

Twins Liya and Lutyik were born December 9, 2000, to Uslada and the late Menschikov in St. Petersburg Russia. Uslada and Menschikov had 16 cubs, and many grandchildren and great grandchildren throughout Russia, Europe and Japan.

Lutyik of the Alaska Zoo in Anchorage died October 13, at nearly 19 years of age. He was born in St. Petersburg, and moved to Australia when he was just a cub, living there for five years with his sister Liya.

In Alaska, Lutyik was paired with Ahpun, but no cubs ever appeared and Ahpun died in early 2018.

Later in 2018, Lutyik welcomed a new companion, Cranbeary, to Anchorage.

Lutyik was suffering from a tumor on his kidney.  

Liya- age 19

As the year closes, we have just heard the sad news that Lutyik's twin sister Liya of Sea World Gold Coast in Australia has died suddenly and mysteriously. She was only 19. She was mother of Henry, born in the summer of 2012 and Mishka, who was born in the summer of 2017 and still lives in Australia. With the death of Liya, there are only theee polar bears in Australia: Mishka and her father Hudson, and another male named Nelson, who fathered Henry, now in Canada.

Rest in Peace, beautiful bears.

Farewell to Nika

Nika, such a beauty

We lost Nika today. She spent most of her life in Karlruhe, where she had a good life, with sand and grass in which to roll, and good friends with whom to play. 

Today was her 19th birthday.

Nika

Some time ago, she injured her right back leg, and the wound would not heal. She would lick and chew on it, and made it worse, even though the zoo veterinarians did everything they could to bring her back to health. Recently the infection became much worse, and she had to be euthanized. 

Nika watches over a sleeping Larissa

She  and her twin brother Lloyd were born in Vienna to Olinka and the late Eric on November 27, 2000. Nika came to Karlsruhe when she was a little over a year old, and had lived there ever since. Nika's twin brother Lloyd went to live in Bremerhaven in Zoo am Meer.

Olinka and Erik went on to have many other cubs. Olinka lives in Rotterdam, and Erik died a few years ago.

Nika and Larissa

Nika and Lloyd descended from an American family of bears. Olinka's father was Omaha, son of Olaf and Olga of the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha Nebraska.

The three bears playing in the grassy area. Nika is in the center

For most of her time in Karlsruhe, she lived with Vitus, who is the same age as Nika, and Larissa, who is a decade older. Nika and Larissa never did have cubs. It was discovered in recent years that Vitus is sterile. 

The three bears having a stand-off. Nika is at left, leading the way

The three bears got along very well, sometimes having little play fights for fun. The two girls took naps together.

The three bears

Vitus and Larissa moved to Neumunster a couple of years ago, and Kap moved in with Nika. Now Kap is all alone again.

Larissa and Nika

Nika

Nika

She was a lovely bear, and I know her keepers are heartbroken. 

We will miss you, Nika.

The three bears playing Ring around the Rosy in the sandpit,
in the glory days. Nika is at left.